Right now, the media is filled with reporting on cryptoassets, and various investment tips are being shared on social media. Even though regulations for the cryptomarket are under development, it will continue to be very risky for consumers to invest in crypto. We have listed four reasons not to invest in them.
FI has been receiving complaints from consumers in Sweden about four foreign investment firms. The foreign supervisory authorities who are responsible for the supervision of these companies have been notified about the complaints.
Expensive and complex products are unsuitable for most consumers. Despite this, firms offer such products on a broad front. This is one of the consumer risks that FI highlights in this year’s consumer protection report.
The criminal economy feeds organised crime and introduces major challenges for society. Both firms and authorities therefore need to do more to reverse the development. The collaboration today between both authorities and firms needs to be developed and deepened. There also needs to be suitable tools to manage the cross-border risks associated with money laundering, particularly for cash-intensive businesses. These were some of the key points from Finansinspektionen’s Director General Daniel Barr as he participated in a panel discussion at Anti-Money Laundering Days 2024 (Penningtvättsdagarna).
Beatrice Ask has joined and will be the chair of FI’s Board of Directors. The appointment runs until 24 April 2027.
Money laundering is a global problem that allows criminals to transact large sums of money without revealing their illegal activities. In order to counteract the risk of money laundering, FI has identified a number of areas where the risks are assessed to be particularly large and that we will have an extra focus on during the year.
The study confirms previous results showing that women are underrepresented in the stock market. The differences arise as early as three years of age, which shows that adults more often buy stocks for boys than for girls. We also see that men generally have larger stock portfolios than women throughout life, although women increase their stock wealth later in life.
In accordance with its assessment in the most recent stability report, FI is leaving the countercyclical buffer rate unchanged in the first quarter. The buffer rate of 2 per cent, which was applied starting on 22 June 2023, shall thus continue to apply. The countercyclical buffer guide is calculated at 0 per cent.
Households continue to be under pressure from both higher interest rates and other costs. This is evident in FI’s mortgage report, which is being published today. The report looks at new mortgagors during the autumn of 2023. We can see that there are fewer mortgagors than in previous years. Home buyers also bought slightly less expensive homes and borrowed slightly less. Total lending to households has stagnated, but despite this household indebtedness continues to be high.
Finansinspektionen publishes the capital requirements of the largest Swedish banks and credit institutions that belong to supervisory categories 1 and 2 as of the end of Q4 2023.